


Across The Stars

by aeonianrose



Category: Uta no Prince-sama
Genre: Alien Cultural Differences, Alien Planet, Alternate Universe - Aliens, Alternate Universe - College/University, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Government Conspiracy, Government Experimentation (mentioned), M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Professors, Roommates, Slow Romance, Spies & Secret Agents, Unrequited Love, basically buzzfeed unsolved but w/ ren and masa, conspiracy theorists
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-11
Updated: 2019-01-31
Packaged: 2019-07-29 16:15:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,548
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16267790
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aeonianrose/pseuds/aeonianrose
Summary: Masato always believed that humanoid aliens were a work of fiction. His conspiracy theorist roommate, Ren, always spoke about the wonder that is life on other planets. Masato only believed in the stars, and lands only the brave could grasp.That is... until he saw a spaceship crash into a forest close to his house. There he met Tokiya, a humanoid alien from a distant planet. Now he faces the tasks of finding a lost twin brother and resources to keep this far planet alive.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> If you're familiar with the Utapri fandom on Instagram, then chances are you have come across the alien au, based on a small comedy skit created by Tokiya seiyuu, Mamoru Miyano, and Masato seiyuu, Kenichi Suzumura. I found myself very shocked at how much I love this concept, and I really want it to grow. I hope you enjoy. :)

“Pizza again…?” Masato grumbled as he held up a slice of limp, grease-soaked pizza. Behind the slice was his roommate (and childhood friend), Ren, who seemed eager to eat all of the potential health problems that came from just the cheese itself. It was late in the evening, and the credulous, orange haired, unemployed flirt just came home from his nightly trip to a club of other credulous unemployed people who ate pizza every day. The man of the opposite wavelength wasn’t having it.

“It was free, okay…? No one at the conspiracy club wanted it, so it's free dinner.”

“I wanted to cook tonight, once I got my paycheck…!” Masato sighed and dropped the pizza onto his paper plate with a ‘plop.’ He pinched his sinuses as Ren began stuffing his face with nerd cuisine. “When are you going to find a new job? You keep saying you will once there’s a new breakthrough in planetary studies, but that's going to take forever! I'm done carrying your ass around like a child.”

“You’re waiting for it to happen too, Hiijrikawa,” said Ren, his ordinary mature tone beginning to rise. “How many letters have you sent this month, saying that you believe there’s a new anomaly in the stars? You’ve been on that telescope every night until the sun rises.”

Masato folded his arms, annoyed at his friend’s comment. “I don’t ponder and theorize -- I investigate. There’s a difference.” It was true that he did send letters every time he looked through that telescope, but he knew exactly what was happening, based on logical sense. If one day Ren showed up at the house saying the world was flat, Masato would definitely pack up his stuff and leave. Nonsense, intolerable. “You and your aliens. Unbelievable. Yeah, they're out there, but they aren't working for the government either!”

“You don't know that! Everything that happens on this planet was set up by the government!”

“That makes no sense!”

A moment of angered silence passed between the two until Ren looked up, puzzled. “Where’s Cecil?”

“Ah, he came late from extra classes today. Passed out in his bed. The poor kid -- That professor of his is really whooping him good with scoldings and make-up work. I believe his name is Camus…”

“Oh? Doesn’t Reiji work with a guy named Camus? I wonder if him and Cecil have bumped into each other before.”

“Maybe you should be like Reiji. He goes to that conspiracy club of yours,” Masato stood up and slammed his hands against the table.”But he still teaches astronomy and physics at a university…!” He composed himself and stood up straight. “I'm going up to the roof. Don’t talk to me until you've found a job.” Ren huffed, not taking him seriously as Masato walked up the stairs to get to the roof, where his telescope was.

The three of them were lucky enough to get a house large enough for a basement, attic, two bedrooms, and a flat roof. Ren used it for suntanning, Cecil used it to get a nice breath of fresh air and focus on homework, and Masato used it for the obvious. Since he pulled most of the weight, Masato bought the whole house, so rent wasn't an issue. Repair services were a pain, however.

Masato pulled up a chair to his setup and stretched out his back. He knew he would be out here for a while. “Ah… Finally…” He exhaled in relief and looked into the device. The sky was beautiful tonight. No clouds to be seen, and the stars twinkled beautifully. “There’s Saturn… Hello, Saturn. How was your day? How are your rings?” Masato giggled to himself, knowing that talking to a planet was silly, yet it made him feel happy. There was a connection to the world outside of his own that he wasn't able to recognize.

“Ah!~ A shooting star!!” Masato spoke out to himself excitedly. He analyzed the star closely… and began to squint at it. The star was growing larger, and it looked like it was… on fire? Maybe it was just some debris that was burning up in the atmosphere. That was Masato’s initial observation, but that debris wasn't slowing or shrinking down at all. He got a closer look from his telescope.

His eyes widened.

That was a ship.

A ship about to crash.

Masato panicked in his seat and immediately stood up. He paced around the roof, trying to figure out what to do. Aliens exist! No, it's too early. They couldn't be invading and declaring war now! But what if they weren't aliens, but instead NASA pilots? Ah, that was even more of a reason to help out!

A loud boom came from behind Masato while he was stuck mid-thought, rubbing his chin with his hand on his hip. His body froze and he turned around. Smoke came from the forest just kilometers away from his house. What if there was a fire?! Ah, enough! He ran down the stairs, out the door of his house, leaving his telescope. Ren had left the kitchen, probably in his room checking his dating apps. His shoes were gone too? He must've heard the ship.

Sprinting, Masato was still trapped in his thoughts, wondering about the possibilities and outcomes from the crash. It had to be NASA pilots. Whatever it was, he passed trees, jumped over branches, and sped through leaves. A silver object in the distance was in his sights. A lion who just found its prey. Masato began to slow down as he got closer and closer, smelling fumes of smoke and gasoline. He started to think it wasn't NASA…

The ship wasn't on fire (thank god), and it didn't look like anything technology from this age could create. It was a pod with a large windshield and no wings of any sort. Just some jet boosters. The ship also had bubbles around, most likely used for decoration. Masato was at a loss for words when he saw the vehicle, then quickly snapped out of whatever trance he was in. The windshield had a large hole in it as if someone punched or kicked their way out. Masato looked down at the ground. There were footprints in the leaves, going east. Which person in any shape or form would have enough energy to escape a crashed ship? He had to follow the path, but for now, he had to investigate and check for any other survivors.

He looked through the windshield, mindful of the broken glass. “Hello?!” He yelled out before gazing upon a figure in the darkness. Whoever it was, they looked unconscious and was still buckled into the seat. Masato kicked in the rest of the broken glass to make an opening, to get safely in and out. He jumped in, unbuckled the figure, and carried them out of the ship. Out of breath, Masato laid the person down. He closed his eyes and kneeled down. His back went up and down as he breathed heavily. His eyes began to open again. Who did he just rescue?

This person… Wasn't a human. This person had purple skin, long antennae that grew straight then curled out from a head of hair that flared out on both sides, and dots along the skin that glowed somewhat. There was a heart shape in the middle of their chest as well, with the same characteristics of the dots. Masato would say this was a man… But, this person was naked and had... nothing... able to be seen. Masato’s cheeks warmed up and he quickly looked to his side, realizing how long he was looking at his downwards area… However, he did have a watch on his wrist.

He just thought it would be best to call this a man. He went stiff again. Was he breathing? Masato lowered his head to the man's mouth to hear if he was making any sounds. There was breathing. He made a sigh of relief. “E-Excuse me…? Sir…? Are you okay?” Masato asked the man. He made no noise and at first, he believed it was a complete loss until the man sat up and gasped loudly. This shocked Masato and he squirmed away from the man. The man’s chest… - No, this was definitely an alien. Masato believed this man was an alien. - pumped in and out. He covered his face with his hand, having an expression of exhaustion and disbelief. Masato moved closer to him, slowly and cautiously. He really wasn't sure about what to do. He thought about possibly capturing the alien and calling over the authorities… But something inside him didn't feel right, and he quickly turned away from that one thought. If hiding an alien in his house was necessary… he would do it. “Excuse me?”

The alien turned his head with a jolt and mimicked Masato’s previous movements. His back hit the ship and he hissed in pain. He must have hurt his back in the crash. Masato needed to take care of that. “Hey, hey…! I'm not here to hurt you!” He said, trying to calm down the alien and reason with him.

“♪⟒⏁ ⏚⏃⍧⊧! ♪⍜ ⏃⍙⏃⊬, ⟒⏃⍀⏁⊑⌰⟟⋏♪!”

Masato’s expression turned blank at the sudden gibberish that came out of the alien’s mouth. “W-What?” Whatever language he spoke, it was like nothing he ever heard before, yet it was beautiful. Almost like musical harmonies and melodies translated into words.

“⟟ ⍧⏃⋏'⏁ ⎍⋏⎅⟒⍀⌇⏁⏃⋏⎅ ⊬⍜⎍…” The alien looked at his watch-like device, adjusted it, and cleared his throat. “Okay… Can you understand me now?” He said, speaking in Japanese. Finally, something he could understand. Masato slowly nodded, unable to form words of his own. “Now that we can talk to each other, I have a request to ask of you.”

“A-Anything…!”

“Leave us alone.”

“Eh?” Masato uttered out, completely off-guard.

The alien stood up with wobbly legs. He fell but caught himself in time against the ship. “We don't need incompetent earthlings to interfere with our plans.”

“Plans?”

“Silence!” The alien put his hands on his hips, and Masato felt the need to look away, his naked body was really making him uncomfortable at this point. Not only was Masato quiet, but the alien wasn't sure what to say either. He looked up and went back to jump into the ship as if he forgot something. “Hayato!” He yelled out and moved the mess in the ship out of his way. “Hayato, where are you?!”

“You're the only person I saw! Whoever else was in there left!” Masato looked down. If there was a puddle beneath his feet, he would definitely look at it like it was an insane person. “My god. I'm talking to an alien.” The alien jumped back out of the ship, carrying a large bag. Luggage from the trip.

“My people are called Adagions.” The alien said and was wary of the broken glass on the ground. He sighed, worried about the health of whoever he lost. “I need to look for my twin brother.” He turned around to the footprints and followed them. Just as he was about to leave the site, Masato grabbed ahold of his shoulder. “What? Don't touch me!”

“You can't go out looking like this! You're- You're… An alien!”

“You’re the alien!”

“You're naked!”

“I am not naked! This is the appropriate dress! You, sir, are a lowlife. Pretending to be royalty with those clothes. Pathetic.”

“Okay, where I come from, everyone wears clothes. What we don't do is go out looking like you with purple glow skin and whatnot.” Masato looked into the alien's midnight blue eyes. “I'm the only person that can help you out. Everyone else won't understand you. Please. I'll help you find your brother.”

The alien tightened his fist. With an exhale of ‘I don’t have any other choice,’ Tokiya held out his other relaxed hand. “Alright, fine. My name is Tokiya.”

Masato took Tokiya's hand and shook it. “I'm Masato. Hijirikawa Masato. I hope to be useful to you.” He took off his jacket and wrapped it around Tokiya’s waist. “For now, it's best to cover you up.”

Tokiya rolled his eyes. “Take me to your home, then. I suppose fitting in would be the best course of action.” He made a questionable look and folded his arms. “If your standards of dress are true… My brother must be really embarrassing himself right now.”


	2. Chapter 2

Masato sat down in a chair in his basement, looking down at his new visitor. Tokiya was resting his legs properly on an old mattress, dressed in Masato’s clothes, wrapped in a blue blanket, while sipping warm tea. 

The basement was home to a washer and dryer, a couple of shelves and closets, when most of the storage belonged to the attic. The walls and the floor were all concrete, and the stairs leading up to the door were made of creaky wood. The smell of must was a bit overpowering. Masato forgot the last time he cleaned this place, and made a mental note to do it again soon.

Masato stared at Tokiya in thought, rubbing his chin, trying to figure out a plan of action. This was difficult… Very difficult. Several problems lingered in his mind, such as the missing brother, the crash not too far from his house, the discovery of an alien, and hiding one in his basement. He wasn't as shocked as much as he was confused… “Hm,” he could only hum, unable to form a conclusion. A loud rumble came from north of his direction.

“Ah, sorry…” Tokiya said, ashamed, and looked to the side. “I haven't eaten in a while. This drink is very good, though… What is it? I've never had anything like this before.”

“Oh, it's no problem… It's a green tea blend. I'll be back in a moment, to get you something to eat.” Masato stood up from his seat and turned towards the set of stairs for the exit of the basement. Tokiya continued to sip the drink as he left the room. Once he exited, Masato closed the door behind him gently and put his back against the wall, breathless. “God, what am I doing…?” He asked himself as if he were a madman.

“What's going on, Masa?” Said a higher pitched voice that he hadn't heard since the previous afternoon. Masato jolted up straight and turned to the voice.

“A-Aijima…” Masato trembled, alarmed. Nervous sweat began to glide down his back. “It's nothing, I was just cleaning the basement. At two in the morning...” He rubbed his arm, unsettled. Maybe the kid saw everything -- maybe his plan failed already. “How long were you out here for? Or when did you wake up?”

Cecil sunk into the couch he was sitting on deeper, and had an authoritative attitude to himself. He was the youngest out of all of them, yet a sense of strictness changed his tone. Masato felt many emotions at this one moment, but confusion stuck out entirely from the first moment he saw the spaceship falling out of the night sky. “I was here since you came in through the door with a cosplayer. I didn't know you were into that stuff.”

Masato made a “phew” motion in his head until he realized what Cecil really meant. His cheeks turned pink and he pointed at the boy who had disappointed look on his face. “That's not what happened! I'm still a…” He cleared his throat and put his hands on his hips. “I was just helping out a friend!” He stated in a deeper, ‘reasonable adult’ voice, trying to combat the ridicule coming out of Cecil’s mouth. “Just let me do the the things my responsibilities require me to do."

“You really sound like a mom most of the time,” Cecil said, ignoring most of what the other said. As far as he knew, Masato definitely wasn't the type to have friends like that. Just tech and science buffs or whatever. “Ah, well. I'll let you do whatever you need to do. I have a test tomorrow and I think I should get some proper rest.” He bowed at his senior. “Have a nice night, Masato.”

Masato tightened his fist as he watched Cecil walk back up the stairs. “Goodnight, Aijima.”

When he was finally alone, Masato headed to the kitchen. He opened the refrigerator and looked inside for anything to eat. Something suddenly smacked him in the head. What the hell did aliens even eat? What if he ate the wrong thing and his whole body exploded? Masato cringed at the thought. Wouldn't be a good idea to do that to someone you were trying to help out. He looked to his right and saw a box of blueberry muffins he had baked on the counter. There was only one left. [Masato smiled, happy that his roommates enjoyed the food he made.] Muffins wouldn't be too bad, would it? He liked sugar on them, but what if it made the acid in his stomach react in a way that would end horribly?!

Masato grabbed a plate from the cabinet closest to him, and put the beautiful golden brown muffin down on it. ‘What a gorgeous creation,’ he complimented himself. Inside the drawer to his left, there was a box of paper sticks filled with sugar. “If he couldn’t have it directly on there... Could he have it on the side?” He gazed at the plate and figured that grabbing more food was necessary since Tokiya would be down there for a while. He pulled fruit, vegetables, and other items out of the fridge and the pantry. He sighed. This was a lot, and if he was questioned about the new emptiness in their storage, more awkwardness would ensue.

“I'll have to go shopping tomorrow… But I can't do that. I'll tell Ren to do it, no questions asked. It's the least he could do with all the spare time he has,” he told himself, assembling everything onto a tray. When he was finished, Masato lifted up the tray and walked back to the basement door, carefully. It was quite heavy, and he didn't want to spill any of it. What a waste that would be. Thank the heavens that a side table was just right next to the entrance of the basement. After making a few awkward movements (putting the tray down, opening the door, picking the tray up), Masato slowly walked back down the stairs. The door needed to be closed… but this was something more important to focus on.

“H-Here…” Masato spoke out almost breathlessly, getting the alien's attention. Tokiya stood up and at a quick pace, took the tray effortlessly. The human went quiet for a moment, taken aback by how quick the tray left his hold, and how it looked like Tokiya only lifted a piece of paper. He ran up the stairs, accidentally slipping on the wooden steps with his socks which were unable to provide traction. After closing the door to the basement, he turned around and walked back down, watching Tokiya. He seemed to be mouthing words to himself, almost in a prayer.

“Thank you, my king, for graciously providing me with life after this treacherous journey. I hope you can provide guidance so I can find my brother -- one of your trusted knights. Our planet will be in safe hands soon.”

Trying not to dive into his personal matters, Masato sat down in his chair in a neat manner. This was probably some religious or honorable tradition from whatever planet he came from. Tokiya fell silent for a moment until he lifted his head back up and looked at the tray of food right in front of him. “Is this all for me?” he asked. Masato nodded and kept quiet. “I see… Thank you, Masato.”

Tokiya noticed the muffin and glanced at it. All of this food was new to him. It looked a bit unsightly as well… He wasn't sure if this was good enough to eat. This looked like something to poison someone with. But, Tokiya did have a reputation of being polite. He didn't want to disrespect the thoughtfulness of his new provider. He lifted up the baked good with a face of half-disgust, then placed it in his mouth to take a bite. While his new guest chewed slowly, Masato could notice the color of Tokiya’s face turning less purple than usual. He was getting sick. Tokiya continued to eat it anyways, and he gripped the end of his- Masato’s shirt tightly, his knuckles starting to turn white.

“Ah, you don’t have to eat it if you don’t like it… I wasn’t sure what applied to your tastes,” Masato urged as he reached his hand out to Tokiya.

“N-No…” Tokiya’s poor excuse of a rejection sounded muffled, almost like he was going to throw up. “It tastes great. I may just have to...” Tokiya put the muffin down back on the tray and Masato swore that he saw the smallest bite of his life. “Take a break.” After trying to recover from the trauma left in his mouth, Tokiya looked at the rest of the items on the tray. Something that really peaked his interest was the stick of sugar left next to the plate of the muffin. Masato didn’t notice what he was doing at first -- he was more focused on the fact that his beautifully made muffin wasn’t up to par with what Tokiya enjoyed eating.

Tokiya took one of the sticks of sugar, ripped the end of the paper, and tried to get a look at what was inside. It was like small grains of crystals... Like the transparent, white kind on his home planet. He wondered what crystals tasted like. Masato only snapped out of his self-wallowing when he watched Tokiya dump a whole stick of sugar into his mouth. His eyebrows flew up and he felt himself going sick once the sugar emptied out completely. “You’re not supposed to eat that!”

“Hm?” Tokiya directed the position of his head towards Masato. His face looked completely unfazed. While chewing the sugar, or what looked like chewing, the alien seemed to be enjoying the snack. No words could leave Masato’s mouth, as he was speechless again. Tokiya gulped down most of the sugar in his mouth and took another stick on the tray. The shocked man who was watching him turned his head away, not wanting to see what horrors lied with pouring a raw form of something that could rot your teeth out into his mouth. He couldn’t see, but Tokiya’s frown curled into a smile. “Delicious!” 

He moved the sugar closer to Masato. “Do you want some?”

“No thank you…” Masato’s voice wavered. “You can have it.” As Tokiya shrugged and continued to eat, he yawned and stretched out his back. It was getting too late, and this amount of hours of staying awake was not healthy for anyone. Even Masato knew this was crossing the line. “I should go to sleep. Are you fine by your-”

He suddenly heard the front door slam, loud repeating footsteps going up the stairs, and another slam coming from a door located upstairs. “-self…” Ren. He couldn’t leave Tokiya alone if Ren was still awake. If Masato remembered that sequence of noises correctly, that meant he brought someone home. Masato shuddered. He didn’t want to hear anything coming from that room. He sighed. Tonight he would just crash with Tokiya. It was worth watching over him anyways. “Are you fine with me sleeping here tonight? That’s what I meant.”

“Sure. Just keep your space.”

Masato nodded and walked over to a stack of blankets on top of a drying machine. They were just washed, thankfully, so he wouldn’t have to sleep in uncomfortable dust. There wasn’t another mattress, so Masato wasn’t sure where to sleep. He could try the chair, but it was all wood, and would not be comfortable enough to close his eyes in. “I’m not sure I can do that-”

“Keep your space.”

Masato took a deep breath in, grabbed the rest of the blankets, and made a makeshift futon farthest away from Tokiya, in front of a table with a lamp next to the stairs. This wasn’t a guest he would normally tolerate in his home. But… this was a different situation, so he would have to deal with it. He lied down on a stack of two laid out blankets, and rested his head on a blanket folded into a pillow-like shape. He wrapped himself up and closed his eyes. The atmosphere felt sickening to him. He didn't take a shower, he didn't clean up his station on the roof, the basement was a mess, and the floor he was resting on felt like concrete, because it was concrete.

“Tomorrow, we should go out looking for your brother. Is that okay with you?”

“Of course. Goodnight.”

Masato sighed and turned off the lamp next to the stairs. “Goodnight…” When he got back to his ‘futon,’ he noticed Tokiya's body quite oddly. Through his clothes, he could notice the spots on his skin glow with a light purple hue, and his antennae too. On his chest, there seemed to be a shape of a heart. Masato wasn't sure if he ever saw something so beautiful sleeping before. He didn't want to admit it to himself, but he could watch Tokiya forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GOD, IT HAS BEEN A WHILE! I apologize for procrastinating on this series, and this chapter was already written!! ;-; I refuse to give up on this AU, and I love it so much!! I hope you enjoyed this new chapter. <3


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chapter three aka tokiya's dress up scene

It was still dark in the basement, and it felt like nothing had changed from the night before. With his eyes closed, Masato could tell that it was late in the morning -- hell, maybe it was the afternoon. He hoped it was just a dream. He hoped he didn’t see a spaceship crash into a forest. He hoped he didn’t rescue an alien. He hoped that he was just going crazy. He felt cold, and sleeping on stacked blankets wasn’t good for his posture either. From this discomfort, it was time to open his eyes… To see what awaited the new day.

Tokiya was right in front of his face, bent over to meet his gaze. His expression was strict and it stabbed him in the chest. “Erm, hello…” Masato spoke out softly, feeling nervous sweat form on his temples. It was real, alright. There was no doubt in that. He wanted to slap himself in the face, wishing that this situation never happened. Curse his curiosity! Where was the closest dissection lab? “Did you sleep well, Tokiya…?”

“I'm hungry, where are the crystals?”

Masato’s face went blank. Humans didn't eat crystals- Sugar. He wanted sugar. He had forgotten about that certain moment from the night before, where Tokiya continuously poured sticks of sugar into his mouth, relentlessly. “There's better things to eat, you know…” He said softly, unsure of what Tokiya’s reaction would be.

“All I need are the crystals. Can't you do that for your guest?” The alien urged.

“Alright, alright…” Masato said, his voice straining from sitting up. The new sensation of running blood had introduced itself to him, and the side he slept on started to feel less numb. “Let me just get ready for the day, then I'll get you the… crystals.” While trying to fix himself, Masato’s eyes ran over Tokiya’s body. He was wearing pajamas still. “I’ll find you something different to wear too. Just wait here.” Tokiya narrowed his eyes in a confused expression. He still didn’t understand the need to wear clothes as a lower class.

Masato walked up the stairs and his hand hovered over the doorknob. The basement was a sense of security even more now, and he was about to leave it. Sure, it was just for a little while, but what if Ren just suddenly waltzed down there and found Tokiya? He shook his head, trying to get the negative thoughts out of his mind. Ren always slept in longer than he did, no matter what the time, early or later, and the factor of unemployment didn’t help much either. He took a deep breath in and out… then opened the door.

The daylight which poured through the windows blinded Masato’s eyesight, and he covered his face with his sleeve. This definitely wasn’t morning… He checked the clock by the front door and read… _3:30?!_ He believed he was going to faint by looking at the time. Eight whole hours, thrown out the window! He was glad he was off work for the weekend. As if he felt the wind being taken out of him by a deadly blow to the stomach, Masato closed the door slowly and trudged up the stairs to his bedroom.

When entering the room, Masato was relieved to see the setting that made him feel most comfortable. It was very traditional, like the houses and rooms that belonged to the family business where he was raised on. Since the house already felt rustic, Masato transformed it into what felt the best for him. Here he practiced his calligraphy, meditation, and personal work. He never wanted to sleep in a disgusting basement ever again.

Masato opened his closet, grabbed an outfit for himself to wear, put it on, and looked for something for Tokiya. Most of his closet contained sweaters, cardigans, button-up shirts, and dress pants. While the alien could care less about looks, considering he never even had the thought of fashion, Masato wanted him to look his best. For about a minute, he stared at the clothing hung on the hangers, and hummed in thought to himself. He finally reached his decision, and grabbed a white button-up shirt, along with black dress pants and black dress shoes.

The door to his bedroom opened and Ren stepped inside without knocking. “Oi, Hijirikawa, do you have any old clothes you don’t want anymore-” His eyes fell on Masato who had a pile of clothes in his arms. “Are you going on a trip…? Or did you read my mind before I came in here?”

“Knock before you enter, Jinguji!” Masato dropped the clothes on the floor and ran over to Ren, trying to push him out of the room. “Don’t you know how to be polite?! You were raised by businessmen!” Ren barely moved from where he stood.

“I just wanted to say good morning… You weren’t in your bedroom last night so I wasn’t sure where you went. I also want to talk about the attic.”

“The attic…?” Masato asked, confused, as he relaxed his arms and put them down slowly.

“I'm uh…” Ren began, nervously putting his hand behind his head and rubbing his neck. “I'm gonna be doing stuff in there for a while. Just don't go in there and everything will be fine.”

Masato tilted his head. This was strange, of course. Why the hell did Ren need the whole attic to himself? There was a second mattress in there, and Masato might’ve needed it if he ever slept down in the basement again. He suddenly had a lightbulb turn on in his head. There was something else... This was his chance to get rid of his anxieties of Tokiya's discovery. “Alright… Well, if I do not go in the attic, then you will not go in the basement, no questions asked.”

“Fine by me. Whatever you want.”

“Great. Might I ask, what's your agenda for today?”

Ren paused, and for a moment he couldn't say what was on his mind. Masato wondered about what he was hiding too, but quickly pushed the thought away. He would be probably terrified of it. “It’s… uh… Job-related.”

Masato took a deep breath in and lowered his eyes. Based on how predictable Ren was, he couldn’t possibly believe that he found a job within one night. It seemed like a lie seethed through his teeth. However, he did want to believe him. This new situation, the attic hidden away... Masato wondered if something new was starting. Maybe he knocked some sense into him during dinner. His word choice did seem repetitive -- situations like that happened too frequently.

“Sure, okay. I’m going to be busy today, so, take care of whatever you need to do.”

Ren slowly nodded as Masato collected all of the dropped items of clothing on the floor and left the room. As he walked down the stairs, he heard footsteps and a door closing. Masato wondered how long the bedrooms would be vacant for. He reached the end of the stairs and turned to the basement door, opening it carefully, trying not to drop any of the clothes. “Ah, Tokiya- could you help again?” He asked out into the black. The boy with purple skin and curly antennae walked up the steps and grabbed the items. The glowing dots on his body made it easy to spot him in the dark. “It’s for you.” Tokiya went silent for a moment, looking at what was in his hands. “Normally, I’d respect your culture… But, if you don’t wear this, you will be immediately spotted.”

Tokiya nodded hesitantly. “Understood.”

Once Masato closed the door and walked down the steps, he turned on the light and stretched out his back, letting out an exhale of relief. Behind him, Tokiya was already stripping down. He tossed the shirt and pants to the side and started at the clothes behind him. Once Masato turned around, he was embarrassed again, but realized that this was the new norm. If Ren did this however, he hoped he didn’t have the same reaction.

It looked like Tokiya wasn’t sure how to put them on and the pajama situation from the night before wasn’t great either. His head was through the sleeve of the shirt and only one leg was through the pants.

“Do you need help?”

Tokiya nodded gently, his expression mixed with somewhat disappointment in himself and somewhat silence.

Masato walked over to him and picked up the black pants. He opened the button and zipper. “Just put your legs through here.” When Tokiya bent down to put his legs inside and he hissed in pain. He stood up straight and put his hand on his back. Masato forgot that he hurt his back in the crash. Before Tokiya could trip over his own legs, Masato held him and slowly lowered him down to the floor. “Sorry, sorry…! I forgot about that…” Tokiya remained silent and hesitantly rubbed the place where the pain was most prevalent. “H-Here, let me do it for you.”

In an awkward fashion, Masato lifted the alien’s purple leg up, which he reacted to. Masato felt concern rise in the back of his head, but thought maybe it was nothing. He noticed that the glowing dots on Tokiya’s skin slowly started to become pink. The human was afraid that he was making his guest uncomfortable and wondered if he should stop already, but they needed to find Hayato. Hayato was the first of their concerns. Masato successfully pushed a leg through and lifted up the second one, reaching over the first. The dots became more pink and Tokiya covered his mouth suddenly.

“Are you alright?” Masato asked, lifting his head up to find Tokiya’s cheeks beginning to turn red through the purple.

“Yes,” Tokiya replied, his voice somewhat muffled by his hand.

Another leg was pushed through. Masato realized what was next and he felt his hands tremble. He rose the pants up to Tokiya’s waist, zipped the pants up, and buttoned them closed. He made an internal sigh of relief, glad that nothing else happened. The same process ensued with the white dress shirt. Both arms went through the sleeves, and Masato buttoned up the the shirt with the last one open.

“Ah, there… It’s done.”

Masato stood up from the floor and took a couple steps back. He turned his head in thought after placing his hand on his hip. Something was off. He listed the possible problems in his head as Tokiya continued to sit on the floor quietly. His eyes skimmed down the alien’s body. Antennae, glowing dots, purple skin… He looked down in defeat. This was far from blending into society. How could you change your skin color and get rid of two things sticking out of your head?

“Ah,” Masato said out loud to himself after coming to a conclusion. Tokiya watched in confusion as the human pulled out his phone from his pocket and proceeded to dial a number on his phone. He pulled the device up to his ear after hearing the phone buzz three times until the person on the other line picked up. “Tsukimiya-san, my apologies for bothering you if you’re busy at this hour. I need you to do me a favor.” After listening to a response, Masato smiled. “Thank you,” he spoke into his phone then hung up.

-

An hour had passed, more wasted time. Masato tapped his foot and bit his fingernails in anxiety as he waited behind the front door for a knock. He checked his watch, and soon enough, two knocks were at the door. Swiftly turning around, Masato grabbed ahold of the doorknob and swung the door open.

“Masa-kun!” said a voice with a higher pitch, and someone with a large pink wig and a yellow sweater dress jumped into Masato’s arms. “My goodness, it’s been so long since I’ve seen you! I ran into Ren-chan last night, but I wasn’t able to say hi to you…!”

“Err, you did?” Masato asked nervously, his voice muffled by pink hair. “My apologies for being out so late, Tsukimiya.”

“You two really need to get some sleep.” Ringo said as he pulled away from Masato and put his hands on his hips. “It’s not healthy for young guys like you!”

“You’re young too…”

“So, what did you need me for?” Ringo asked, immediately changing the subject. “Don’t tell me you only called me over because you wanted to hang out and get your own makeup done… Although that would be quite nice!” He turned back to his bags that were laid down by the front door and picked them back up to lug them inside. Masato tried to reach out to help his senior, but Ringo physically insisted that he did the job himself.

“I uh,” Masato slowly began, rubbing the back of his head. “I have a certain friend that needs to be… disguised…”

“I love disguises!” Ringo admitted which was quite obvious based on his own looks.

“This person… Once you see them, please don’t be freaked out, okay?” Masato headed towards the basement and waited for Ringo to follow.

“Oh please,” Ringo said as he waved his hand with a confused expression on his face. “Don’t you know me?”

Masato opened the door to let the other walk down the stairs. He tried to take the heavy bags once again, but was once again turned down. The two of them stepped down carefully, as Ringo made sure not to trip over his heels. The guardian hiding an alien didn’t want to bite his fingernails again, but he was sure that beads of sweat were forming on his brow.

Tokiya looked up from his mattress and immediately saw Ringo. At first, he was incredibly scared of a new person he had no clue about, but if they were with Masato… they probably were a good person, able to be trusted. His antennae began to droop, and the dots on his skin glowed a small shade of orange. Masato took notice of this and tightened his fist.

“Now, let’s see your friend!” Ringo exclaimed excitedly before his eyes landed on Tokiya. He froze in place as he stared at the alien in silence. He didn’t look surprised or shocked, but tried to take a small moment to figure out who exactly he was looking at. “Ah, I met you last night! Taking on multiple identities… I haven’t seen a lot of people like that in person! I mean, I do know what that _feels_ like...” He discerned with a bright smile on his face.

Masato could only hear a glass shatter in his head. Somehow he expected a response quite like that, yet he didn't prepare for it. Met him last night…? What did that mean…? Could he be possibly talking about… _Hayato?!_ At first he was wondering if telling Ringo about the fact that Tokiya wasn't human was a good idea. Yet no words came out of his mouth. He had no idea how to approach this new situation now. It was like a baseball just broke through a window, and the window was his brain.

“Let me guess… You want to look normal just for another night, correct? We should be friends so I can do this for you whenever you want! Luckily I remember what I did for your makeup…” Ringo quickly put down his bag and broke it open. He began to dig through all of his makeup to find the products he used the night before. Tokiya swiftly moved his gaze towards Masato, then Ringo, then Masato again. Based on his statue-like state, he figured that going to his guardian for help wasn't possible. Going with what the pink haired crossdresser said may have been the best bet he could get. Suddenly, Tokiya's arm was pulled out and soon a creamy, human-like skin color was being brushed against his own skin. The alien was a bit shocked at first, and almost jerked his hand away from Ringo's grasp, but he soon realized what this was for. He was being made in into a human. Seeing the purple on his skin being covered up effortlessly was strange to him, yet oddly satisfying. Of course, he would hate conforming to earthling ways, but this wasn't so bad.

Masato snapped out of whatever he was thrust into, and saw that Ringo had already began the makeup process. Within minutes, Tokiya's arms were covered up, and no purple could be found. Some parts began to glow through the foundation, but it was hardly noticeable, considering that the skin color was very pale -- maybe a shade or two darker than Masato's. After his neck and chest were covered up, the last things were his face and ears. Ringo had pinned up Tokiya's fringe and sideburns out of his face, and it looked somewhat funny. The alien's hairstyle made him look serious and strict, but now that factor was pulled out. Tokiya jolted up slightly at the cold substance being spread on his face and ears, and watched Ringo's brush stroke his cheekbones and jaw.

After a few finishing touches, like powder and facial dimension to make him look not so much like a blank canvas, Masato was in awe. As Ringo undid his hair, the alien looked very much like a convincing human. Tokiya looked up at him with almost puppy-like eyes, and Masato stumbled back somewhat, like an arrow went through his heart. His pale cheeks began go glow a slight shade of pink, and he quickly covered his mouth as he looked down at the floor.

“Ah, there!” Ringo exclaimed in relief as he stood up and moved backwards to look at his work of art. “Oh, but these…” He spoke softly as he pointed to Tokiya's antennae.

Tokiya's eyes glanced upwards, and he watched his antennae lower slowly. These were quite sensitive, and if Ringo had the slightest intention of touching them, that would be crossing the line. A lot of Tokiya's enhanced senses came from these antennae. Losing them would make him… more human… If that made him more convincing, than whatever. The more the better. Tokiya looked downwards towards Ringo, and saw the bobby pins holding his wig in place.

“Those things in your hair,” he finally spoke for the first time since their guest had arrived. “May I have two of them?” He asked politely.

“Hm?” Ringo looked at his pink wig and realized that he was talking about the bobby pins. “Oh yeah! Sure!” He moved back to his bag and searched for the items.

“W-Wait, Tokiya…” Masato started as he walked closer to him. “Are you sure about… taking care of those?” Tokiya nodded, determined and soon Ringo sat down in front of him. He gently took an antenna, pulled it down, and pinned it into Tokiya's hair. The alien gripped his shirt tightly. The sensation felt so wrong, but it was worth the cause.

After a few seconds, the second antenna was pinned down, and no traces of the alien boy could be seen. Ringo's work was done. Masato folded his arms as his eyes widened, still pleasantly surprised. “Wow,” he spoke, breathlessness in his tone. “He looks amazing. This could work.”

Ringo stood up and walked over to stand next to the other man. “Of course it will! I’m a genius, after all!”

“Ah, right… My apologies.” Masato turned his head towards to his senior and made a look on his face that was grateful for what he had done. “Really, thank you for this.” He spoke with sincerity.

Ringo smiled, flattered. “It’s absolutely no problem, Masa!” He suddenly put his hands on his hips and leaned over, close to Masato’s ear. He whispered gently:

“And don’t worry, your little alien secret is safe with me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was a bit longer than I initially anticipated-


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